1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to valves and more particularly to a diverter valve operable to switch the flow of a fluid from a first output to a second output and, when the fluid exceeds a predetermined temperature during its flow in the second output, a heat sensitive actuator operates to shut off such flow. Means are provided for subsequent application of a cooling fluid to the heat sensitive member to restore it to its open position when desired. The invention is particularly well adapted for use with a water purification device connected to a water faucet to provide, in a first condition, a flow of unpurified tap water, and in a second condition to divert the water to the purification device. Since some water purifiers can be damaged by high temperature water, the valve will sense a damaging temperature and shut off the flow to protect the purifier but, after the water is again at a safe temperature, the valve may be quickly opened to resume purifying.
2. Description of the Prior Art.
It is quite common to provide valves which close when the temperature increases beyond a certain point. For example, in the Kolze U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 4,541,448, a heat sensitive shut-off valve is shown which utilizes an expanding wax that operates in connection with a piston and a cup to close an opening when the wax melts due to the application of heat. A description of an expansible material that operates under high temperatures to expand and actuate a valve is shown in the Vernet U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 2,636,776. A number of other patents likewise show temperature responsive valves in general, but none of them have provided any way of quickly cooling the temperature responsive actuator so that the valve may be rapidly reopened to permit normal operation.